Addiction

So this review so far has minor spoilers, so please read with caution.

This story is promising. But its not because of the FL. In actuality, I had trouble wanting to keep reading it after chapter 10. (I am on 14). In my opinion, this story is too troupe heavy and the interesting elements it does have, it doesn’t lead into. The female lead is golden hair, pale skin, and green eyes, despite her mother having dark skin, eyes, hair having come from the desert. The FL is called a dessert wench, it would have been interesting to see someone who looks like her mother obtaining the throne and collecting her people who have scattered rather than a very typical looking FL. She says she desires revenge and wants to emulate the cruelty she has faced, but I don’t sense that while reading it. For majority of the 14 chapters, it is the demon who instigates the plans, the clothes, the acquaintances. There is a line where the demon praises her for earning another demons trust. That action? She smells good. No kidding. She didn’t do anything. It was an Edward/Bella scenario where she smells delicious so she has the demons interest. They have the, met in the past troupe which I have an issue with (which I rant on in a chapter). The FL is your typical, innocent, tragic beauty drawn to the demon wanting to get stronger. She isn’t interesting yet and I think a big weakness of this story is it doesn’t lean into its strengths more. Demon seduce the queen? Show him do it like Sebastian with Beast (black butler). The female lead says she wants to be cruel and make her family suffer. Show that anger and hatred and desire for cruelty. Even when she talks about wanting to be cruel in her revenge, you don’t feel hatred from her.

There’s a chance this may turn around. I don’t have issues with weak FLs. I have read Under the Oak Tree, and Ebony which have FL that start off extremely weak and dependent, but those stories take great care to establish how they became that way. IT shows grittiness and realism to them. This story… everything is just pretty around her. I like that they show a little blood, but they should lean more into it. I do like the side characters. Maybe, I just want some of that Japanese manga type darkness in this story you don’t see in manhwa very much. I think this story is perfect for a little blood and gore, but its trapped by the genre’s troupes.